Question reference: S6W-26363
- Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 21 March 2024
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Current status: Answered by Maree Todd on 16 April 2024
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what pathways of support and treatment are available to eating disorder patients who may require non-standardised care.
Answer
We are committed to supporting people to access the right care at the right time and having support in place to respond to the whole person needs of those who suffer from an eating disorder. That is why in 2023-24 we allocated £55.5 million to Health Boards to improve the quality and delivery of mental health and psychological services for all, including eating disorder services.
The Scottish Government has recently developed a draft National Specification for the Care and Treatment of Eating Disorders in Scotland which will be finalised later this year. It clearly outlines that we would expect services to have specialist pathways and work jointly with other services to care for anyone with co-occurring considerations such as neurodiversity, pregnancy, diabetes etc.
The vast majority of people with eating disorders will be treated in the community, with support provided by primary care or community mental health teams, and with support links to specialist hospital or voluntary sector care where appropriate.
We have also provided Beat, the UK’s largest Eating Disorder charity, with over £600,000 to provide a range of support services for those impacted by an eating disorder.